Rackham, Arthur | "Dance of Spring"

Rackham, Arthur

"Dance of Spring," original watercolor illustration from Snickerty Nick and the Giant, circa 1919

Ink and watercolor illustration (to sight: 260 x 215 mm). Apparently on artists' board, signed at lower left, and signed and dated on verso "No. 2 | Arthur Rackham | 16 Chalcot Gardens | London N.W.3 | England"; very faint toning. Early mat; not examined out of mat.

[With]: Ford, Julia Ellsworth, et al. Snickerty Nick and the Giant. New York: Moffat, Yard & Co., 1919. 4to (242 x 182 mm). Frontispiece and two color illustrations, 10 black and white illustrations; one or two closed marginal tears, occasional browning and staining. Pictorially stamped blue cloth; extremities rubbed with some splitting to head and tail of spine, joints staring. First edition. Latimore & Haskell, p. 50.

An enchanting Rackham illustration, incorporating the fantastical elements that would become his legacy.

The present image appeared as the frontispiece of Snickerty Nick and the Giant (of which there was no English edition). Snickerty Nick, written by Julia Ellsworth Ford, was loosely based on Oscar Wilde's The Selfish Giant. Then central character of Snickerty Nick, however, was entirely original to the work. The themes of the play are magic and wonderment, sentiments that are certainly expressed through the present illustration. In addition to the fairies dancing though the composition, the present work also features a fantastic ink border, with other whimsical creatures.  

A striking Rackham illustration from a rare work. 

REFERENCES:

Latimore & Haskell 50